Meet Barbara

Bob: Barbara has what they call Brainstem Multiple Sclerosis, which attacks the brain, and then the signal to different parts of her body doesn’t quite get there. It’s a terrible disease. What it does, it just picks away at you a little at a time. It’ll take away your mobility. Barbara’s been very blessed. In some cases, people can’t even feed themselves.

Bob: She did quite well for a lot of years. [And] she became very sepsis because of the shots. She was in a research hospital in Boston, Massachusetts for three weeks in a coma. We all thought we were going to lose her back then.

Bob: And the doctors grabbed me and said, “The next 48 hours are very crucial whether your wife lives or dies.” And I’ll never forget that day as long as I live. I felt so alone.

Bob: Three weeks she was in a coma, and then she finally came out of that coma. And in 45 minutes she came out of that coma. They had a team of 40 doctors trying to figure out what was going on with her, and they said to me, “We don’t understand what happened.” I said I know what happened. She was saved by the love of christ. And it was just a blessing.

“There may not be a silver lining in the disease itself, but there’s hope. Always hope”

Bob: My job changed and my insurance changed and bam! All of a sudden the bills started coming in. And I said to her doctor, “I can’t afford this. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I want my wife to keep getting it, but I don’t know what to do.” And he suggested The Assistance Fund. There are funds available to people with MS and other diseases.

Bob: So we went ahead and looked up The Assistance Fund. Put in our application, figuring we were going to be denied, but praise god—they accepted her and it has been a lifesaver. It’s just a true blessing.

Bob: For a woman that’s been sick 41 years, you’d never know that she had MS for 41 years. We’re in that pool. We’re on that motorcycle. We’re living our life.
Barbara: I think it’s your attitude, (an) “I’m gonna beat this” attitude.

Bob: The Assistance Fund, I said it earlier and I’ll say it again, God bless you. The people that donate to that and can support that. They have no idea how they’re touching the lives of normal people like us.

Bob: You just never give up. And always look forward. Don’t ever look back. There may not be a silver lining in the disease itself, but there’s hope. Always hope.